Jun 18, 2022|
Seven Highlights of 2022 JD618 Grand Promotion
by Vivian Yang and Doris Liu
“JD.com is ready to embrace the era of supply chain value,” said Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Retail, at the JD618 media briefing session on June 18, noting that the outbreaks of Omicron in China have led the whole society to recognize the value of supply chain in an explicit and profound way. JD.com would continue to open its supply chain infrastructure, technologies, expertise and capabilities to push forward the development of the whole industry, he added.
Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Retail at the JD618 media briefing session
The 19th 618 Grand Promotion this year is themed “Responsible Supply Chain.” Several key highlights are revealed through the shopping festival’s consumption data from 8 p.m. on May 31 to date, all of which provide insight into consumption in the second half of the year. The shopping festival will officially end on June 20.
1. Service quality matters
Good services weigh increasingly heavily, if not being a decisive factor, in people’s shopping choices. At this year’s shopping festival, consumers gave greater approval to JD’s premier customer services, of which JD offers a total of 185, covering the entire consumption process before, during and after sales.
Robot vacuums and air purifiers that promise 30-day free trial and “replacement over repair within 180 days” have seen sales jump by 200 percent. Sales of cracked phone screen insurance increased more than 300 percent YoY, and over 80 percent of users who purchased the insurance opted for an unlimited repair guarantee.
Boosted by JD’s free tire-change service and three-year quality guarantees, the transaction volume of tire products on JD Auto surged 300 percent YoY.
People’s awareness of their health has increased dramatically. The early screening service of critical illnesses is among the most popular health services ordered on JD Health, with its transaction volume rocketing by 50 times YoY. Sales of furniture products in J Shop, JD’s omni-channel fashion and home stores, that were tagged with a prepaid insurance settlement, increased over 160 percent. The transaction volume of online glasses ordering services increased six-fold YoY, to name just a few.
2. New products prevail
Consumers showed strong interest in the new generation of products with novel technologies, designs, and functions, or those that can bring brand new experiences, propelling manufacturers to present products with better quality and ideas. On the Super Day of the consumer electronics category during JD618, the transaction volume of gaming laptops priced over RMB 10,000 yuan grew by 120 percent compared with the same period last year. The average growth rate of emerging home appliances such as gaming TVs, fresh-air conditioners and smart vacuum cleaners increased over five-fold YoY.
Transaction volume of new outdoor and camping products rose by 300 percent, and sun protection clothing was up six-fold YoY.
3. Omni-channel accelerates
JD’s on-demand retail services including the Shop Now program and JDDJ are providing greater nearby amenities for consumers from online to offline. Deeply connected with more than 150,000 offline stores in over 1,700 cities and counties across China, the omni-channel solution is empowering brick-and-mortar stores of all product categories with richer marketing plans and one-hour delivery services to customers within 3-5 kilometers radius.
During the 618 period, JD also opened its physical home appliance flagship stores in 12 Chinese cities, such as Nanjing, Yangzhou, Wuhu, Liuzhou and more, further expanding shopping experiences and tangible engagement with a broader range of consumers.
The transaction volume of JD Health’s medicine procurement for small and medium-sized drug stores and clinics increased 48 percent, with over 90 percent of these procurers coming from the county or lower-level regions.
4. SMEs and merchants in recovery
As the coronavirus has brought unprecedented uncertainties, JD introduced 30 measures for JD618 to support SMEs and merchants’ businesses and contribute to the solid development of the real economy.
SMEs’ ROI was increased by more than 20 percent during the shopping festival. Transaction volume of over 27,000 brands and 30,000 stores partnered with JD Super, JD’s omni-channel supermarket, saw an increase of five times YoY . In particular, the omni-channel business of Wal-Mart, China Resources, Yonghui increased 6.6 times YOY in sales.
JD’s data showed that more than 4,000 merchants of consumer electronics doubled their sales YOY on the category’s Super Day.
5. Green consumption on the rise
Ahead of JD618 on May 20, JD.com announced the “Green Impact Initiative” to green-label one million kinds of products conforming to a set of environmentally friendly standards to guide people’s responsible consumption.
As of June 5, over 11.57 million products related to green consumption were sold on JD.com, with sales of electric cars up 200 percent YOY and toilets with water efficiency rating up by 8 times in sales respectively.
6. Farmers’ produce items gain popularity
Agricultural products have been emphasized in this year’s campaign as part of rural revitalization initiatives to promote quality produce and boost farmers’ income. To achieve this purpose, JD’s logistics infrastructure continued to consolidate in rural areas, providing supply chain services for more than 1,000 origins and industrial belts of agricultural specialties all across China.
For instance, transaction volume of kiwifruit grown in Sichuan province increased by more than 10 times compared with last month, while sales of Yangshan peach from Jiangsu province and Dongkui waxberry from Zhejiang province rose over six times month over month.
Moreover, since JD’s logistics network enables the agricultural products to be transported smoothly, it can be seen on JD.com that 51 percent of Inner Mongolia’s lamb went to Beijing and 41 percent of the seafood from Zhejiang province to Sichuan.
7. Responsible supply chain
A responsible supply chain, by JD’s definition, is a combination of both hard and soft capabilities, namely the infrastructure represented by its nationwide warehouse networks and other modernized logistics facilities, and the ability to efficiently integrate all the resources.
As of now, 45 of JD’s “Asia No. 1” intelligent logistics parks and 1,400 warehouses across the country have built a highly integrated logistics infrastructure as well as a network of warehousing and delivery with multiple tiers. The growing logistics network guarantees an end-to-end product circulation, leading to a better customer experience.
JD’s smart supply chain system also synergizes intelligently with 81.2 percent of suppliers of JD’s self-operated stores. With the help of JD’s C2M solution, JC2M intelligent manufacturing platform, the new product launch cycle has been shortened by 67 percent from before to more precisely cater to the target customers.
Technologically, JD Cloud saw a 154.5 percent growth in peak user visits per second as compared to the same period last year. JD Intelligent City Consumption Promotion Platform issued nearly RMB 1 billion yuan of consumption vouchers in more than 10 cities.
Apr 22, 2024|
JD.com Debuts AI Digital Representative of Founder Richard Liu During Livestream, Drawing 20 Million Views in Under One Hour
During a livestream on April 16th, JD.com introduced an AI digital representative of its founder, Richard Liu (Qiangdong Liu), nicknamed “procurement and sales manager Brother Dong (采销东哥).” Liu appeared in both JD Home Appliances and JD Supermarket’s livestreaming rooms, attracting over 20 million views within the first hour and generating RMB 50 million in sales throughout the entire livestream.
The digital representative almost perfectly replicates Liu’s facial expressions, body language, gestures, and voice, capturing even the subtlest movements of his fingers. Behind this technology is JD Cloud’s ChatRhino, an advanced large language model (LLM) that brings the avatar to life.
Behind the Technology
The LLM precisely mirrors Liu’s distinctive expressions and movements, naturally weaving in his occasional finger twiddles while he speaks, accentuating points with hand gestures, and adding nods at just the right moments for emphasis, creating a natural and authentic representation. Perfecting the voice proved to be a greater challenge. Those who have heard Liu speak are well-acquainted with the distinct inflections of his Suqian accent—a characteristic touch from his small-town roots in Jiangsu province. Observers will note the brisk pace of his speech, lighter enunciation, and his tendency to meld words in a seamless flow. His “sh” sounds carry a nasal quality, and he often addresses people as “brothers” to boost morale.
While programming the standard Mandarin dialect is relatively straightforward, teaching the AI to adopt the nuances of the Suqian dialect and Liu’s unique vocal patterns required a precise level of customization from the ChatRhino LLM. For example, the LLM had to provide accurate judgments on when to introduce the nasal tonality or the specific moments to merge words, ensuring the AI’s linguistic output mirrored Liu’s signature speaking style authentically.
Beyond replicating vocal characteristics, the AI’s voice must also be suitable for the casual, dynamic atmosphere of e-commerce livestreaming, such as adopting colloquialisms like “xiong di men” — a phrase comparable to “folks” or “guys” in English — to create a friendly rapport with the audience. JD Cloud’s ChatRhino team fine-tuned the model to focus on sociable nuances. The initial dataset for the LLM consisted predominantly of Liu’s formal speeches—spirited and compelling, yet too ceremonious for the interactive world of livestreaming. To cultivate a more congenial and approachable persona, the team utilized Liu’s recent casual conversations as the primary source material, rich with personal anecdotes and travel tales. This approach shaped the AI’s voice into one that is that is not only natural and approachable but also genuinely engaging for the end user.
As a fully self-developed technology product of JD Cloud, the ChatRhino Digital Representative solution has already served over 4,000 brand merchants, contributing to a 30% increase in order conversion rate during idle hours and helping merchants reduce livestreaming costs, enhance operational efficiency, and optimize user experience. Equipped with 50,000 hours of voice data, this technology enables digital representatives to intelligently adapt to various livestreaming styles dynamically.
The AI is also adept at managing 70% of routine live chat inquiries autonomously without any manual intervention, while also optimizing its responses with a self-improving algorithm. For instance, digital representatives can autonomously fields questions using product details and scripts, and post-livestream, and assimilate new information. Mirroring the acumen of seasoned sales professionals, it boasts a 90% accuracy rate in offering tailored product recommendations when solicited by customers.
The recent introduction of a cutting-edge livestream control console serves as the “brain” for the digital representative solution. It diligently monitors real-time inventory, adjusting the showcased products in the livestream and tailoring the script to ensure relevance—sidestepping items that are out of stock and spotlighting those in high demand. It also gauges and fine-tunes the frequency and style of interactions based on live audience engagement. With this advanced platform, businesses managing multiple livestreams can effortlessly operate thousands of sessions concurrently via cloud services, bypassing the need for intricate local setups. This innovation yields a substantial cost reduction of 30%.
Human-Machine Synergy
The intention behind digital avatars is not to outshine or compete with human talent but to harness the potential of technology to work in concert with livestreamers, maximizing overall growth. Essentially, the digital representative solution serves as a tool for brands and merchants to leverage long-tail traffic once real livestreamers conclude their broadcasts. JD’s analytics indicate this strategy can boost order conversion rates by 30% during off-peak hours, such as late into the night.
Digital representatives also excel in specific product categories that require detailed explanations, such as health products like nursing beds, electric wheelchairs, and oxygen concentrators. The solution can provide constant, round-the-clock guidance, adding substantial value to livestreams when traffic is typically lower.
Last week, JD.com announced an investment of one billion yuan into video content creation. This investment underscores JD’s commitment to leveraging the power of short videos and livestreams to transform the online shopping experience for its users and create new growth avenues for brand merchants.
Apr 20, 2024|
JD.com Unveils Ambitious Plans for 618 Grand Promotion: Aiming to More Than Double High-Performing Merchants
JD.com is gearing up for this year’s 618 Grand Promotion with an ambitious goal: to more than double the number of merchants achieving sales over one million yuan on its platform. At the recent Conference of Merchants and Ecosystem Partners on April 18, JD.com introduced a range of supportive initiatives aimed at achieving this ambitious target.
Sandy Xu, CEO of JD.com, noted at the conference that the company will dedicate significant resources to bolster traffic support, incorporate advanced AI technology, and enhance service capabilities. These efforts are particularly focused on empowering third-party merchants, including small and medium-sized enterprises in its marketplace.
Key initiatives include optimizing the platform’s traffic distribution ecosystem to prioritize highly-rated stores and products and competitively priced products through enhanced search and recommendation mechanisms. Additionally, JD.com will continue to offer merchants free access to high-traffic channels, which include significant incentives such as the popular 10-billion-yuan discount and free shipping programs.
To engage more content creators, JD.com recently announced that it will allocate over one billion yuan in cash incentives and traffic resources. This investment aims to cultivate a vibrant ecosystem that supports merchants’ traffic, business growth, and innovation.
At the core of JD.com’s strategy is technological innovation, which involves integrating AI-driven solutions into merchant operations. This includes the deployment of JD’s proprietary large language model, ChatRhino, and an AI-empowered merchant operation platform that offers are variety of free AI applications, and more. These technologies streamline various operations scenarios, enhance efficiency, and reduce costs for merchants.
For instance, On April 16th, JD.com unveiled an AI digital avatar of its founder, Richard Liu, as a sales host on its livestreaming platform. This event attracted 20 million viewers in just one hour and generated sales exceeding RMB 50 million ($6.9 million). This AI-driven virtual host technology, developed by JD Technology, is now supporting over 4,000 brands on the platform. Additionally, merchants such as a sashimi knife seller can utilize JD.com’s AIGC content generation tool to quickly produce high-quality demonstration images, bypassing traditional costs associated with product photography.
JD.com also continues to enhance its service capabilities, particularly for small and medium-sized merchants. This includes personalized business guidance, comprehensive training programs, and upgraded after-sales services, ensuring a seamless shopping experience for customers.
As of March 2024, JD.com has seen a significant increase in active third-party merchants on its platform, surpassing one million. This growth is a testament to the platform’s effectiveness and its appeal to both new and established merchants.
European Diplomats in Beijing Invited to Deliver Products Ahead of JD’s 618 Grand Promotion
